


Cady Heron/Janis Sarkisian One-shots

by macaroni_meangirls



Category: Mean Girls - Richmond/Benjamin/Fey
Genre: F/F, Its just oneshots, i have an alter ego, i swear im not stealing them from jeffersonsmacaroni7, its soft and gay, thats it thats all it is, theres not enough of this ship, theres trigger warning for the ones that need them, very gay
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-15
Updated: 2018-08-22
Packaged: 2019-06-27 22:12:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15694365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/macaroni_meangirls/pseuds/macaroni_meangirls
Summary: A whole bunch of one-shots featuring Cady and Janis from the Mean Girls musical accepting requests.





	1. Damian, I'm NOT Gay (lies)

"Jan, you're gay," Damian reiterates, throwing a piece of popcorn at the ceiling. "Too gay to function. So gay. So very, very gay. Why, if gay could be measured, your gay would fill an eighteen-wheeler. So much homo."

Janis flicks his arm. "Damian, I'm not gay. Not even a little. You're gay enough for both of us."

"Oh, so that's why you keep staring at Cady's ass every time she stands up in Lit," Damian says calmly. "That must be why you show no interest in any men. That must be why Shane Oman kissed you in the hallway and you pretended to vomit into a trashcan. Such straight. Very hetero."

"It's not my fault Cady has the best ass I've ever seen. I'm finding goals, Damian, not a girlfriend. And you would also gag if Shane Oman shoved his gross, sweaty, overly-muscled tongue down your unsuspecting throat, especially on a dare. So yes, Damian, such straight. Very hetero."

"Gaaaaaay...." Damian teases.

"Not gay!"

"Gay."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Am not!" Janis drags Damian into a quick kiss, ignoring the sinking feeling in her stomach as their lips touch. Kissing guys, even Damian for the love of God, shouldn't be this much of a turn-off. But she's not accepting being gay. Totally impossible. She's straight and always has been.

"Ew!" Damian shrieks, his voice higher than even Karen's. "What was that for?"

"Proving my sexuality," Janis smirks, stealing a handful of his popcorn. "Who's gay now, Mr. Falsetto?"

"I take offense at that," Damian jokes. "I'm telling you, Sarkisian, you're gay. Just accept it now."

"Fat chance," Janis huffs.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Janis scoops up her lunch tray loaded with mystery meat and mushy peas and weaves through the cafeteria towards her table. She's a pro at this. No problem.

"Well, look who it is, Gretchen," a familiar voice drawls. "The lesbo herself."

Gretchen and Karen titter. "Ew!" Gretchen squeals. "Look out, Regina! She might try to make out with you if you let your guard down!"

Janis freezes. She should keep going, of course she should just keep going, but the Plastics' words hold her in place like a bug trapped in amber. A worthless, tiny little bug. That's all Janis is, really.

"She should't be allowed in the girls' bathroom," Karen adds. "You know, it's really not safe for us normal people with her in there."

Janis is shaking now, willing her legs to just move, but they won't and she hears every single word. The whole cafeteria has fallen silent except for a few snickers, grateful it's Janis Ian taking the heat today, which means it's not them.

"Only place you'll fit in is in a porno." Regina's eyes narrow spitefully as she stares down Janis. "Dyke." And she steps forward, picks up the cup of mushy, sickly green peas in one hand and the milk carton in the other and dumps both on Janis's head, then knocks the tray to the floor. It lands with a clatter, sending the portion of Janis's lunch that she's not wearing across the grungy linoleum.

The peas drip sickeningly slowly through her black hair. The almost-expired milk rolls onto her jacket, her favorite jacket, and stains her clothes. Willing herself not to cry, Janis turns and walks quickly out of the cafeteria and into the girls' bathroom. Or at least she means to. As she turns, she finds herself face-to-face with none other than Cady Heron, whose mouth hangs open in shock.

A muffled sob escapes Janis's throat at this final humiliation and she runs from the scene, from the Plastics laughing, from the snickering cafeteria, from the sad and shocked and disappointed gaze of Cady Heron.

She locks herself in a bathroom stall and cries. She cries from fear and from sorrow and from hating Regina George and from hating herself and from the way Cady looked at her.

Janis doesn't cry. But today she sobs until her eyes burn and her mouth feels dry.

"Janis?"

Oh no. Anyone other than her. Anyone other than Cady.

"Jan, you okay?"

"Cady, I have cafeteria food dripping through my hair. Do I look like I'm having a fabulous fucking day to you?" Janis snaps through her sobs, angry at Cady for asking dumb questions and angry at herself for yelling at her friend.

Cady doesn't take it personally. "Why don't you come out of there and we'll clean your hair off?" Cady offers. "And then you can rant for a while."

Janis reluctantly steps outside, hugging her arms to her chest. Crying makes her feel vulnerable. "I'm sorry for snapping," she mumbles.

"It's okay," Cady promises with a smile. "I get it."

Being a poser Plastic means Cady has a comb in her purse. With the help of a soaked paper towel, soon Janis's hair is clean and the worst of the milk is out of her clothes.

"Let's talk," Cady says, plunking down on the floor next to Janis.

"About what?"

"What Regina said."

"What about it?"

"Just talk to me, Jan," Cady says, running her fingers through Janis's hair and and the dark-haired girl can think about is how nice it feels and how warm her fingers are and NOT GAY.

Janis swallows hard against the sudden flood of saliva pouring into her mouth. She's not ready to tell Cady what's really happening, but she deserves to know.

"When we were in middle school, I was best friends with Regina George," Janis begins in a wavery voice. Cady's brows crinkly in confusion. "What-"

"Just-just let me finish," Janis says unsteadily. "The only way I'm going to get through this is if I do it all in one breath. So we were friends. And then Regina got her first boyfriend, this guy named Kyle, in eighth grade. And then all her friendships went out the window. She'd blow me off, I'd call her asking her why, and she'd tell me I was being insane. Every time. For her birthday, she was having an all-girls pool party, and I had the first invite. And then one day, Regina-" Janis's voice breaks. "Regina came up to me and said, "Janis, I have to un-invite you because I think you're a lesbian."

Cady gasps softly and twists a strand of Janis's hair around her fingers.

"I told my mom," Janis says quietly. "And she made a big fuss and called her mom and they argued for a while and Regina decided to get me back. She told the whole school that I was a lesbian, and that-" Her voice breaks again, tears rolling silently down her cheeks. "That no one should go to the bathroom alone because Janis the Dyke would molest them if they did."

Janis breaks down on Cady's shoulder, sobbing again. Cady gently rubs her back, murmuring pointless yet comforting nothings to Janis as she cries. The heavy black eyeliner smears into Cady's pastel shirt but she doesn't mind, because Janis is crying and that is the only thing that matters in this moment.

Finally the sobs turn to sniffles and Janis lifts her head, displaying a face like a raccoon. "Cady, I think I might actually be, you know,..."

"Gay," Cady finishes.

"Yeah. Yeah, pretty much," Janis agrees, staring the truth in the face. Now that the words have been said out loud, they seem to take up space in the room.

"Cool," Cady says. "Were you worried we'd kick you out or something? I mean, Damian's 'too gay to function' and I'm like, aggressively bisexual. We love you, Janis."

Janis looks up at Cady and smiles tentatively. Cady slowly moves her hand from Janis's hair down her jawline to her chin. Both girls look each other dead in the eye, and then Cady closes the gap between their lips.

It's sweet, slow, and peaceful. Janis doesn't know what to do with her hands and she feels big and clumsy and awkward, but Cady kisses her with the grace of a dancer, keeping one hand under her chin and one resting on Janis's hip.

They break apart and smile at each other, neither one willing to break their gaze.

And that's when Damian enters.

"Oh my God!" he squeals. "You are gay!"


	2. Shut Up Janis You're Not Dying

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Janis has a really nasty flu and Cady has to to talk her into letting herself be taken care of.

"Janis?" Cady knocks on the door of the bathroom. "You okay?"

"Fine," Janis snaps back.

"You wanna let me in?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"You don't need to see this."

Cady sighs in exasperation with her girlfriend. Janis ducked into the bathroom twenty minutes ago and has been kneeling in front of the toilet for all twenty without doing anything other than fighting with Cady.

"You should let me in," Cady tries again.

"No!"

"Please?" Cady pleads.

"No."

"Jan, come one. Part of this whole dating thing is letting me take care of you."

There's a heavy sigh, and then "Fine."

Cady pushes open the door to find Janis with her hair pulled back in a sloppy ponytail, even paler than usual and drenched in sweat.

"Babe, you're burning up," Cady warns, stroking Janis's bangs off her shining forehead.

"I'm dying," Janis pants.

"No, you're not," Cady counters. "You're just a little sick. You'll feel better if you go ahead and get it over with, you know. You're going to throw up eventually and if I were you I'd go for the easy way over the hard way."

"You think this is optional?" Janis laughs wryly. "No, trust me Heron, if I could get this over with I would, but I'm struggling right about now."

Cady laughs a little and takes a barrette off the edge of the sink. Pinning Janis's bangs back, she rubs slow circles on her back and soaks a washcloth with her other hand. "Breathe," she admonishes gently. "Your lungs are rattling like an African mule cart."

"I love when you talk foreign kid to me," Janis mumbles. She gives an appreciative moan as Cady dabs the sweat off her forehead. "Mm, that's cold."

"That's the idea," Cady rolls her eyes. "Can you just hurry up and puke your guts out? I want to get back to bed and it's cold without you."

"I feel so loved," Janis mumbles. "I'm going to die and that's going to be the last thing I ever heard from you."

"Shut up, Janis, you're not dying," Cady rebukes.

Janis suddenly collapses over the toilet, retching violently. The girl's head disappears below the rim as she gags. "That's it," Cady murmurs, suddenly all tenderness. "There you go. Breathe, baby. Take a deep breath. I've got you. That's it. Let it all out, love."

Janis's fever is going up higher and higher. As she collapses against Cady, the taller girl can feel the hot dryness of her skin through her thin T-shirt. "I'm dying," she moans.

"You're not dying," Cady responds robotically, applying cold water to her face.

"My tastebuds are," Janis says back. "Can I have some water?"

Cady fills a glass and hands it to her. "Slowly," she orders. "Small sips."

"I never get sick," Janis complains, nestling further into Cady like a baby bird. "Like, ever."

"Then you're long overdue," Cady responds. "Come on, we're going to bed."

"You're gonna get it too," Janis mumbles, leaning on Cady as they stand.

"Doubt it," Cady laughs. "I had every childhood disease imaginable in Africa. My immune system has strengthened."

"I get to be the little spoon," Janis announces. "Because I'm dying."

"You're not dying!" Cady reprimands. "Because you're sick, fine. You're short enough anyway."

"5'4'' is not short!" Cady gives her a knowing glance. "Fine, not that short."

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Three days later Cady bolts out of bed and into the bathroom. Janis is right; she's got it, and she now fully understands why Janis claimed to be dying. She's boiling hot and freezing cold at the same time, her body is racked with chills, and she feels so nauseous she's actually praying to just throw up and get it over with. But just like with Janis, she can't, so she waits, drenched in sweat and shaking, hoping that it'll be over soon.

"Cady, love, can I come in?" Janis asks softly, knocking on the door.

"Yeah," Cady answers weakly. "If you want."

Janis flies in and kneels next to Cady, pushing her auburn hair out of her face. "You've got it bad, huh?" she asks quietly, touching Cady's face.

"Go ahead, say 'I told you so' and make dying jokes," Cady answers bitterly. "I deserve it."

"Love, you're sick," Janis says softly, fetching a wet washcloth and pressing it to the back of Cady's neck. "I wouldn't do that."

"Do I see a soft Janis?" Cady teases, leaning against her girlfriend.

"I'm not soft," Janis answers. "Just concerned."

"You can go back to bed if you want," Cady offers. "I think I'm going to be here for a while."

"I'm not leaving, love." Janis presses a kiss to Cady's forehead. "I'm not going anywhere."

For two hours Janis bathes Cady's feverish, sweaty skin and presses soft kisses to her face and gently massages the aches from her body, showing a tender side Cady didn't know existed.

Suddenly, her mouth fills with a massive amount of saliva and Cady leans over the toilet, bringing up what seems like everything she's eaten for the past year. Janis slips a hand under the back of her shirt and presses a hand to Cady's forehead to hold her steady. Gently rubbing her back, she murmurs soft words as Cady retches. "Shhh," she whispers. "Shhh, it's okay, love. That's it. There you go. Love, I've got you. It's okay. You're gonna be okay. Oh, love..."

Cady finally collapses against Janis, the cold marble of the bathroom floor cooling her feverish body. Her dark-haired girlfriend strokes her hair and then leans up and flushes the toilet. "Come on, love, let's get to bed," she murmurs, lifting Cady bridal style. Cady leans her head on Janis's shoulder as she carries her to bed. Janis places a bucket by her side of the bed and clambers in behind Cady, making her the little spoon without even waiting to be asked.

"I feel like an asshole now," Cady murmurs. "I treat you like you're just being whiny and then you come and be this fantastic..."

"Love, this is coming from experience. I had this. I know things now. Terrible things. And you're like this all the time. I'm just soft when you're sick." Janis presses her lips to the back of Cady's neck. "I love you."

"I love you too," Cady murmurs, wriggling closer to Janis.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Second one done. Enjoy whiny Janis and patient Cady. And a rare soft Janis has been spotted. I know this isn't the best; I'm doing a lot right now. Sad gay garbage out.


	3. You're Going to Prom Whether You Like It or Not, So Deal, Heron

Janis groaned and slammed her head into the table. "Whhhhhhhyyyyyyyyyyy?"

"Mood," Damian responded. "Are you gay-pining for Cady again?"

"Yeeeessssss."

"Just ask her out, moron."

"What if she says no? I'll be crushed!" Janis whined.

"First, what is this, a chick flick? Second, she's like, aggressively bisexual."

"What does that even mean?"

"It means that you're probably going to get some," Damian winked.

"But what if I wreck our friendship? I kinda like Cady, you know?"

"Why are you even asking me?"

"I honestly don't know."

Cady slammed her bag down on her seat. "Hey, bitches," she greeted. "What does Janis not know?"

"Why I live," Janis groaned, knocking her forehead on the table again. "I'm a useless lesbian, how about you?"

"What do you call an army of Norse bisexual motorcycling monarchs?" Cady spat out, clearly bursting to tell the joke.

"I don't know," Janis muttered through her hair. Damian shrugged.

"The bikings!" Cady shouted, hysterical with laughter over her own joke. 

"Ha," Janis said weakly, staring at Cady's pearly white teeth. God, I'm gay. "So, prom, huh? Do you think Aaron's going to ask you?"

"No," Cady answered. "He's sold on Regina, and honestly, she can have him. I've gotten sick of him."

"What do you mean?" Janis asked, arranging her features into what she hoped was a "concerned friend" face rather than a "ecstatic gay" face.

"He's boring," Cady answered, stabbing her rubbery piece of meat. "Ah, my favorite, meat of ambiguous origin."

"Who are you going with, then?" Janis asked casually. Well, semi-casually.

"Eh, I was wondering if Damian wanted to go with me," Cady answered. At that moment her "meatloaf" flopped off the tray and onto the floor, sending Cady diving after it, cauisng her to miss the vicious glance Janis sent in Damian's direction.

As Cady emerged clutching her "meat," Damian shook his head. "No can do, sweetheart. I'm going with that girl that doesn't even go here."

"Why?" Cady asked, sticking a bite of "meat" in her mouth. At Janis's horrified expression, she shrugged. "Five-second rule!"

"I mean, she doesn't even go here, but she can't get a date at her school, so I figured 'Why the hell not?' It's platonic!" Damian responded. "But Janis can go with you, right?"

"Damian, I'm sure Janis has a plan already," Cady responded, totally oblivious to the blush in her friend's face.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Janis unrolled a sheet of paper and pinned it to the table. Writing in scrawling print across the top, she labeled it "Getting Cady to the Prom" and underlined it.

This done, she was officially out of ideas.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So, uh, my name is...um, Jared," Janis said into the phone in the deepest voice she could manage (not that deep.)

"How can we help you, Jared?" the radio announcer asked magnanimously.

"So there's this girl that I, uh, want to ask to prom, but she thinks we're just-" Janis's voice cracked. "-just friends. So how should I, um, ask her to prom?"

"You do know you called the STD awareness line, right?" the guy said after a brief pause. "If you have chlamydia, this is the place. If you don't, move on please."

"Oh, shit, wrong number," Janis yelped, forgetting to disguise her voice. "Oh, shit-" She hung up, slamming the phone back into the receiver.

"Plan B," she announced. "Now in action."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Janis dotted the last i on the note in front of her and and lowered her pen. Scooping up a bottle of perfume, she squirted it over the note. The perfume was a favorite of hers and Cady's: a bottle sponsored by Flex Tape, featuring the guy sawing a boat in half, scented like "tears and roses." They'd joked about the perfume so many times that Cady would instantly recognize it.

Janis folded the note into an envelope and pinned it to Cady's locker, taking a deep breath to steady her nerves. Damian, who'd agreed to distract Cady while she placed the note, winked at her and motioned for her to flee the scene. Janis hurried away and ducked behind the banister, watching for Cady's reaction.

The auburn-haired girl stepped up to her locker. Janis watched breathlessly, nervous nausea sitting in her stomach as she watched Cady say something to Damian. He answered and then Cady saw the note. Smiling, she pulled it off the locker. Janis smiled a little too, hoping for a squeal, or maybe a hug, and a quick acceptance.

She wasn't planning on Cady dropping the note like it was dog shit and backing away with tears in her eyes. "What is that?" she shrieked.

Too. Much. Perfume.

The stuff had aged overnight, resulting in a mixture of locker smell and the scent of rotting cat corpses.

Damian, his shirt pulled up over his nose, made eye contact with Janis from her position behind the stair railing. He shrugged before running away from the overly perfumed letter.

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"I can't believe this!" Janis shouted, making her fifth turn around the art room. "Everything I do fails."

"Why don't you just, I don't know, ask her?" Damian suggested for the tenth time.

"Because I'm scared!" Janis shrieked, the words slipping out before she could stop them. "I'm scared, okay, Damian! I'm scared of asking and I'm scared of getting rejected and I'm scared of losing her and I'm scared of proving Regina right because she said I was a lesbian so many times that I just got scared of making it true and I know that it is true but I don't want it to be and if I ask Cady to prom then it really will be final and...oh God, Damian..."

Damian blinked as Janis dissolved into tears in front of him. "Come here, Jan," he muttered finally. He folded her into an awkward hug. "This is awkward," he mumbled, trying to find a way to fit his arms around her as she sniffled.

"What if I set it up for you?" he asked finally. "You calm down and I'll go get Cady and you can talk to her on your own terms, in here?"

Janis pulled back a little. "How gay is it to give someone art?"

"Very," Damian admitted. "What are you thinking of?"

Janis opened her notebook, revealing a drawing of Cady with "Prom?" written in neat, perfect lettering.

"Cute," Damian said. "I'll get her and then you ask her and give her that, okay?"

Janis nodded, sniffling a little. "Okay. Okay, I'll try."

Damian pushed a strand of hair out of her face and then slipped out the door, leaving Janis alone to collect what she was going to say.

Damian came back with Cady all too soon, and as soon as they made eye contact what little Janis had cobbled together flew out the window along with her common sense.

With a click, Damian closed the door, leaving them alone. "Jan, you've been crying," Cady noted. "You okay?"

Janis nodded desperately. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine." She took a deep breath, anxiety wracking her body. "Willyougopromwime?"

"I'm sorry?" Cady answered, forehead creasing in confusion.

Janis pushed the drawing into her hand. "You're...you're going to prom with me whether you like it or not, so deal, Heron!" she snapped, hoping she sounded like actual Janis and not this shivering soft mess of feelings that just the thought of Cady made her become.

Cady looked even more confused. "You mean, like, platonically, or...what?"

Janis forced an eye roll, ignoring the fear building up. "Will you, Cady Heron, go to the prom with me, as my date, that I am actually dating?" she asked. Or meant to ask. It came out as "Will you, Cady Heroin, shit - no, I mean Heron, go to the Spring, shit - no, Prom, with me, as my girlfr - date, that I am, oh God, why am I still talking, actually dating?"

Cady blinked. Then she flew forward and hugged Janis, or rather, crash tackled her. The pair skidded across the floor and hit an easel, dumping the half-finished sketch on their heads. "Ow," Janis groaned from underneath Cady.

"You know, this isn't how I imagined the first time you'd be underneath me," Cady joked. Then she froze. "Oh my God, did I say that out loud? Oh my God, I can't believe it, don't kill me, I actually said that!"

"Let's make this slightly more awkward," Janis muttered, wincing as Cady rolled off her. "Jesus, girl, you're bony! Why are your knees so sharp?"

"Did I hurt you?" Cady asked, helping Janis up.

"No," Janis laughed. "I'm just a melodramatic gay. How about it?"

"I'm so unbelievably in," Cady said, smiling awkwardly. "I'll pick you up at 6?"


	4. Oh Don't Mind Me I Just CAN'T BREATHE OVER HERE

The first time Janis had an asthma attack around Cady was in the girls' bathroom on her first day.

"Regina George is not sweet," Janis yelled. "She's a scum-sucking road-" Her words were cut off by a coughing fit.

"You okay?" Cady asked, reaching out tentatively. Janis shook her head wildly, her thin frame racked by hacking coughs. Every inhale came as a deep wheeze as she shuddered, invisible iron bands tightening around her lungs.

Damian ripped her backpack off her shoulders. "Cady, sit her down!" he ordered, rifling through the backpack frantically. Cady grabbed Janis's hand and pulled her down, bracing her back on the wall. The muscles of her neck and shoulder stood out from the strain of trying to get air.

"What's happening to her?" Cady screeched, her voice higher from fear.

"Asthma attack," Damian answered, pulling out a small inhaler from Janis's bag. "She'll be okay, honey."

Damian pressed the inhaler into Janis's hand and slipped an arm around her, gently rubbing her back in slow circles. "Jan, breathe," he murmured. "Deep breaths. Don't die on me."

Slowly the coughs subsided and Janis's breathing steadied. "Thanks, Damian," she said quietly, pushing herself up.

"You have asthma?" Cady asked.

"Yeah. I've had it since I was a little kid. Normally I would've outgrown it by now, but it's stuck with me. It's pretty severe, in case you hadn't noticed. Damian had to do CPR on me once."

It was then that Cady realized she was still holding Janis's hand. She quickly dropped it, trying to ignore the fact that she was already missing the way Janis had clung to her hand like a life preserver while she'd been coughing.

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The second time was during a track meet.

Janis, although she didn't look it, could run. Really well, as a matter of fact. Even with her asthma, she'd joined the track team and simply covered it up by suddenly needing the bathroom whenever her chest tightened.

Cady, too, started running on the team. So she was with Janis when Coach Carr, lips a bit red and smelling somewhat like the perfume that surrounded the "Cool Asians" table, ordered his team on a four-mile run through the neighborhood.

Janis and Cady ran next to each other, carefully avoiding every other runner. So they were alone when Janis's lungs contracted and her body began trying to cough out every organ and childhood memory it could find.

Cady stopped instantly. "Jan, where's your inhaler?" she asked in a panic, seizing Janis's hand again.

The smaller girl shook her head, bent double with raspy coughs. "Not...here...," she wheezed. "In...track...bag..."

She clung to Cady's hand, shaking as black spots darted in front of her eyes. The big black splotches began to balloon larger as she still couldn't get any air. A rush of adrenaline flowed through her veins and sudden panic exploded. She still couldn't breathe and she was terrified and shaking and oh God she was going to die right here with only Cady and maybe that wasn't so bad but she'd have liked to see Damian again and she'd really have liked to get in some famous last words like "Sarkisian OUT!" but now it's time and now all her bravado was gone along with her oxygen and oh God she really was going to die.

Cady cursed. "Okay then," she said in what she hoped was a calm tone. Her mother had used this same tone on terrified little African children when they needed medical help. She could tell from Janis's eyes that she was having a panic attack and she hoped to God her mother's magic tone would work again. "Deep breath. In and out. You're too cute to die. Breathe. I've got you, Jan. You don't need the inhaler. Just relax. Try not to panic. You're gonna be okay, Jan. You've got to be okay. Just breathe. One breath okay, one breath?"

Janis finally sucked in a deep, rattling breath, but she managed to exhale without any coughing. A couple more, and she began to feel her chest loosening somewhat. "I'm gonna walk the rest of the way," she gasped. "You can go ahead if you want."

"I'm staying," Cady answered, squeezing her hand. She started to pull away, but Janis tightened her grip.

"Just-just let me hang onto you for a little while, okay?" she asked. "I thought I was gonna die there for a minute."

Cady relaxed, letting Janis hold her hand for the rest of the walk, and she pretended she wasn't hurt when Janis dropped her hand like it was burning when they reached school grounds.

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The third time was when Cady and Damian were having an argument. They stood ten feet apart on opposite sides of Cady's living room, screaming at each other.

"I can't believe you told him!" Damian screeched.

"What? That you liked him? Like it was any secret!" Cady bellowed back.

"Do you know what you've done?" Damian shouted. "You've ruined my life! Shane's gonna make my life hell if-"

"Cady..." Janis mumbled from the couch. "It's happening again..." They paid her no mind.

"If what?" Cady shrieked. "If I don't fix this? You're the one in love with Shane Oman, which is a terrible idea-"

"Cady!" Janis said.

"Says the girl who fell for Regina George's boyfriend!" Damian cut in.

"Oh, don't mind me, I just can't breathe over here!" Janis shouted over them with the last of the air in her lungs. Damian had her inhaler in his bag and if he didn't help her she'd be in danger.

Cady and Damian shared a horrified glance before running to Janis's side. Her lips were turning blue and her fingernails were also tinged light cobalt. Janis's eyes rolled up in her head and she fainted against Cady.

"She's not breathing!" Cady wailed, searching for a pulse.

"Put her on the floor," Damian ordered, his forehead creased with concentration. "And call 911."

Cady lowered Janis gently and pulled out her phone as Damian began CPR.

"911, what is your emergency?"

"My friend, she has asthma, and she had an attack and she passed out!" Cady sobbed, staring at Janis's still head lolling across the floor as Damian tried to force life back into her.

"What is your location?"

Cady gave the address through the tears.

"What care is being given?"

"My friend is doing CPR."

"Is there an adult nearby?"

"No."

"How old are you?"

"Seventeen."

"What are all the names?"

"I'm Cady Heron. Damian Hubbard is doing CPR, and Janis Sarkisian is on the ground."

"I am sending paramedics your way. I want you to stay on the phone with me and tell me what's happening."

"Okay," Cady agreed. "She's not waking up. She wasn't breathing when she fainted."

"Did she have a pulse?"

"I couldn't find one but...it happened so fast...I was kinda panicking and then Damian started CPR so I...I don't know," Cady gasped out as Janis lay on the floor, small and still. She wanted to hold her hand so badly.

"Miss Heron, please calm down," the operator said. "You are Miss Sarkisian's only line to help right now. It is important that you remain lucid."

"Okay," Cady agreed. "Okay. She's still unconscious."

"How is Mr. Hubbard's strength holding up?"

"He's getting tired," Cady sobbed. "Is she going to die?"

"I'm going to try to keep that from happening," the operator answered kindly. "I may need you to take over for Mr. Hubbard. Can you do that?"

"Yes," Cady answered. "I can."

"Damian, let me take a turn!" she shouted, kneeling next to Janis. She'd done this once before, on a woman named Tsitsi in Africa. She'd failed then. She prayed she wouldn't today.

Janis's ribs cracked under her hands as she pounded her heart, willing it to beat on its own. Blowing two breaths into the girl's mouth, she returned to the quick compressions.

"Come on, Janis," she muttered as she pushed on her chest. "Wake up!"

Janis suddenly spasmed, sucking in a deep breath. "She's breathing!" Damian screamed into the phone. "She's breathing!"

Eyes wild, Janis flailed weakly, too drained to sit up. Cady seized her hand instantly. "You were dead," she sobbed. "Jan, you were dead. Your heart stopped. You weren't breathing."

"Well, I am now," Janis teased, a faint smile dancing across her lips. "Hey, calm down," she added to a hysterical Cady. "I'm alive now. Not even a little dead. See?" she said, squeezing Cady's hand. "Could a dead person do that?"

Cady froze for a moment and then ducked down and kissed her fiercely. "Don't ever do that to me again!" she shouted. "You scared me!"

Janis stared at Damian, her face tomato red. He grinned back. "Paramedics are still coming, Jan. I'm glad you're not dead."

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The fourth time was when Cady tried to ask Janis out on a date.

She'd planned it all out. She wrote a note in her best cursive - she knew how Janis felt about cursive, calling it gorgeous and "the sexiest handwriting alive" - and slipped it through her locker, asking Janis to meet her in the "back building."

Janis came, all right, thankfully without Damian in tow. Settling into the grass, she turned to Cady. "Why do you want to talk to me out here?"

"Jan, we need to talk."

"Look, Cady, if this is about you kissing me, I'm giving you an out. You were emotional and understandably freaked out and, well, if you regret it, I'm not going to use it as a weapon or anything. We can let it go."

"What if I don't want an out?" Cady asked. "What if I want you to remember?"

Janis blanked for a moment, then laughed. "Funny, Cady, very funny. Like you want to date me."

"I do."

"Cady, seriously. Your joke's not funny. It honestly really fucking hurts and if you could stop dragging it out, that'd be really great."

"Janis, I. Am. Not. Joking," Cady stated. "I want to go out with you. For real. How about it?"

Janis stared at her for a moment. For a second, she was about to answer, her eyes brimming with hope and joy. And then the coughing fit started.

Cady took her hand as they always did whenever Janis's lungs decided to take a break from functioning. The smaller girl tightened her grip until her knuckles turned white as her chest tightened. This was the first time since her near-death experience and she was more scared than she really wanted to let on.

Cady pulled her in and hugged her as she shook. Janis never gave hugs, or got them for that matter. But slipping into Cady's long, warm arms felt perfectly natural.

Janis reached out and carefully brushed her long, slender fingers along Cady's cheekbone. Then she leaned up and kissed her as passionately as she could.

"Pick me up at 8?"

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I'm obsessed with these two. I'll leave a link for fellow shippers to torture themselves with. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kku3FeUcT4c


End file.
